Journey to the End of the Night

25: Chapter 25: Soulless Shell 25: Chapter 25: Soulless Shell Before she could wait for his answer, she continued, “That’s not right either.

Looking at your strength, it barely reaches the Fourth Grade of the Seeking Tao Realm, while Miss Li from your sect has received a transmission of power this year from the elder eunuchs within, and her strength has already broken through to the Open Origin Realm.

No matter how bold you are, you wouldn’t be able to kill her.

With that in mind, this lady’s personal sword—it must have been a gift from her.”

As she spoke, she laughed again, “How interesting.

The daughter of the Lihe Sect’s Sect Master, not only does she not eliminate the corpse demon upon meeting it, but she also gifts it her sword.

If her father, that old fart Li Xuan, finds out about this, I bet he’d be so angry his nose would be crooked.”

Baili An thought to himself that if Miss Li’s father truly knew the truth, it would be more than just a matter of a crooked nose.

“Miss Yin, do you know Miss Li?”

It seemed that the Lihe Sect had quite the reputation.

Yin Baishuang replied with an air of scant interest, “I wouldn’t say I know her.

I just paid special attention to Lihe Sect because of a little incident that happened years ago.

Back then, Lihe Sect was nothing impressive, and the old Sect Master, without his sword, declined year by year.

I suppose in a few more years, that old man should be kicking the bucket, but fortunately for him, he had a daughter late in life, with Spirit Roots and Talent that are both quite extraordinary.

It must be considered some consolation for the contemporary Lihe Sect.”

It seemed that this girl didn’t hold a very high opinion of the Lihe Sect, calling someone an old man so casually.

Baili An’s heart was secretly sweating.

“But I’m quite curious, how did you, with your measly Seeking Tao Fourth Realm strength, realize there was something wrong with that hunter?” Yin Baishuang’s beautiful eyes lifted, carrying a hint of rare curiosity.

Baili An looked down at the Autumnwater Sword in his hands and said, “He showed a flaw from the start.

He’s a hunter, and his interest in a dead man’s exquisite wallet isn’t strange, since ordinary people would think that it might contain some Silver Taels.

But that wallet isn’t an ordinary wallet—it’s a Qiankun Bag.

A mortal without any cultivation naturally could not open the Qiankun Bag, even if he tried to burn it or chop it with an axe.

Without a trace of Spiritual Power, he could not open it.

If it were a normal person, a wallet that couldn’t be opened would have no value and naturally wouldn’t be kept with them.

From this, it’s clear that the disciples from the Beasts Palace, coming this way, wasn’t an unlucky accident but something he did on purpose.

Later, in the Stone Forest, he was beaten by those disciples from the Beasts Palace.

He looked to be enduring pain quite convincingly, but he overlooked one detail.

When his daughter was about to be violated, he still maintained a painful expression on his face, without much concern or anger for his daughter.

From this behavior, he didn’t seem at all like a father but more like a puppet without emotion, only knowing how to complete its tasks instinctively.”

Yin Baishuang followed up, “So that’s why you took the initiative to offer to bring the father and daughter back here.”

“Yes.” Baili An nodded, “I carried him all the way back here, and I clearly felt that this man has no heart.”

Yin Baishuang said, “And that thing, it must have known that you were investigating him, yet it still pretended to be oblivious, leading us here.”

Baili An’s gaze fell on the corpse in the pit, stripped of its internal organs, and said, “His goal is simple, to devour us just like he devoured them.”

“But you still came.”

Yin Baishuang’s voice suddenly became very light and gradual, the cool grey in the depth of her eyes faded slightly.

She was no longer indifferently distant about everything, showing a rare bit of interest, “This thing is not easy to deal with.

Even I haven’t been able to figure out its true origin.

Are you sure you want to mess with it?”

In this world, there are very few corpse demons as weak as him, because those who have not yet grown strong are alone and defenseless.

The people of the righteous paths eliminate them upon meeting, and those of the evil paths would capture them to drain their blood and squeeze out their last bit of value.

So, the smarter ones usually hide in the deepest mountains, desperately cultivating until strong enough before coming out to wreak havoc.

For him to so foolishly delve into the mortal world and get involved in human troubles is a first.

But if you say he is foolish, his wisdom is superior to all corpse demons, and even far surpasses most people in the Mortal World.

Baili An, looking down, watched his shadow stretched out obliquely by the moonlight, “That girl is innocent.”

Yin Baishuang raised her eyebrows slightly, “You saved her, and not only did she not appreciate you, she even regards you as a demon.

And you still help her?”

Baili An looked at her and said, “Does Miss Yin think that, as a corpse demon, I inherently deserve to be feared and loathed, that upon being spotted by one from the righteous path, I must be dealt with swiftly to affirm the Immortal Path?”

Yin Baishuang nodded, “For many people, that’s the case.”

“But you didn’t do so, Miss.

With a flick of your finger, you could crush me to death, but you became my friend instead.”

Baili An lifted his head and removed his hood, his gaze warmly resting on her, a distinct smile flowing through: “Could it be that Miss does not originate from the righteous path people?”

Meeting Baili An’s gaze, Yin Baishuang naturally looked back at him, a gentle smile spreading on her face.

Her eyes didn’t curl into crescents this time, but there was truly a hint of a faint smile, “I am what I am, whether righteous or evil, kind or wicked; that is not for others to judge.

I only do what I want to do, kill those I wish to kill.”

“In that case…” Baili An smiled slightly, “I am the same.

Whether I’m a corpse demon is not important.

If she’s afraid of me, that’s her business.

If I want to meddle in this idle matter, then that’s my business.”

Yin Baishuang silently watched him for a while, then said, “I came here purely out of curiosity to see what this creature was.

I’m not interested in acts of great compassion like saving people.

If you get your heart and liver eaten by that thing, I won’t meddle.”

Suddenly, clouds gathered in the sky above, and both the moonlight and starlight dimmed in an instant.

Under the dark night, the faces of the young man and woman blurred into the shadows.

Baili An whistled in the direction of the thatched cottage.

A small deer, which had been burying its head in fruits, almost soured its teeth, heard the whistle and felt liberated.

It hurriedly spat out the sour fruit from its mouth and dashed towards the girl who was picking up bowls and dishes.

Effortlessly knocking her onto its back, amidst the girl’s cry of surprise, it raced toward Baili An.

Watching the corpse demon and the deer exhibit an extraordinary tacit understanding that transcended species, Yin Baishuang couldn’t help but ask, “How long have you been raising this deer?”

Baili An silently counted in his mind and answered, “Eleven days.”

“Eleven days?” The tone of Yin Baishuang changed slightly with surprise, and then she felt somewhat sour inside.

When she first brought the Vermilion Bird Qiankun Bag home, the relationship between Shou and her wasn’t good.

She wasn’t adept at Ghost Control Techniques, and even communicating with Shou was extremely difficult.

At that time, Shou, lying in the coffin, was so full of malice that he almost became uncontrollably violent, nearly breaking out of his confines by himself.